[brianiak]

Hello guys,

It's me again. I have compiled a brand new list of headphones under $100 dollars that I plan to buy. Here's the thing. I am not really planning on buying an amplifier because i think it is going to go way over my budget. I plan on connecting these headphones to mostly my computer's sound card and occassionally to my IPOD. (Is that okay?) I hope I am not limiting the potential of these headphones. Well here are the headphones that I have in mind:

1. Grado SR-80
2. Sennheiser HD 555
3. Alessandro MS-1
4. Equation RP-21
5. Denon AD-1000K
6. Audio Technica ATH-ES7

All of these headphones are under the $100 mark because that's my budget! What I'm looking for is entirely Performance. Comfort is a factor, but I think I am looking for the thrill. The number one thing that i will be doing is listening to Music (i listen to all kinds, trance, r&b, rap, pop, alternative, a little rock, etc). The second thing i will be doing is play a little bit of gaming (something that will give me good accuracy on where my opponents will be). Thirdly i will watch some movies occasionally.

If you guys have any additions, please let me know, but what im really aiming for is your VOTE ON MY POLL! Thanks guys!! If you guys decide to let me know what I should get, please give me a reason because I have never tested or heard any of these headphones in real life. Thanks

The thing I am most worried about is how the performance will be limited without a personalized AMP. So I guess my question here is what here will work best without a headphone AMP?

Brian

 

[brianiak]

I was thinking about going for Alessandro MS-1 but i dunno... are these and grados only good for Rock? I dont really listen to hardcore "rock". I listen to alternative, love songs, lots of songs with Vocals. Also, where would i buy the Alessandro MS-1? The website seems like its having trouble with the shopping cart

 

[texashorn91]

Quote:

Originally Posted by brianiak /img/forum/go_quote.gif I plan on connecting these headphones to ... my IPOD. (Is that okay?) I hope I am not limiting the potential of these headphones.

Well, you are limiting the potential of your headphones. I have some HD555s and I love them, but I am powering them trough a Marantz. I am on a budget system too, and all I did is get a mini to rca cable to connect to my Marantz receiver and it sounds 10x better. The cable costs about $3 or $4. If you have any kind of receiver you can use, I highly recommend it. That way, they are getting sufficient power.


Here's an old pic of my setup that I am recommending for you:

Good luck!

 

[Uncle Erik]

Buy the Grado SR-60. With the TTVJ coupon, it is about $65. Do 't worry about the hard rock distinction, Grados are special in the mids and should be perfect for your music.

The soundcard is adequate. If I were you, I would scrape together a few more dollars and order the SOHA kit from Glass Jar Audio. Don't panic over the DIY. Just approach it with a "I am going to do this" attitude. You really can build your own. There is plenty of advice here and the members will get you past any problem.

 

[brianiak]

dang... yeah... i was hoping not to make an investment for an Amp. If anything the most i'll spend for a personalized AMP is $40-$50. But After that I am over my budget I think... So without an Amp, which of these headphones would be best for me? If you know of an amp that is less than $40, feel free to let me know!

 

[corpse_linguini]

Best $100 i ever spent were on Equation RP-21, even made my parents take a blind test with my ATH-AD700 and RP-21(even tho they are completely different phones... they both liked the RP's. i think they were convinced because of its deep bass and sound stage...Plus they on sale for $79.99 at Full Compass w/ free shipping...

 

[brianiak]

Are you using a personal AMP for those Equation RP-21's ? I am looking for the best headphones for under $100 that do not have dependency on an AMP. If there is an amp for around $40 dollars, I'll buy it! (i seriously dont know anything about amps and am only considering amps around the 40 dollar range)

 

[corpse_linguini]

i use a cmoy amp that i bought on ebay... to be exact its a J. Seaber CmoyBB (bassboost) u can easily find it on ebay for around 50bux...great lil amp with an oprtional bass boost but not necessary for the Rp-21's ...its been reviewed here as well...also hear alot of great stuff from Biosciencegeek on ebay as well...

 

[brianiak]

oh hmm i c.. that looks like a very appealing pricetag! Portable Headphone Amplifier CMOY amp Headamp ALPS, PCB - (eBay item 260191064502 end time Dec-13-07 15:28:12 PST) how does this one perform? any better ones for around $50? whats the best brand for these headphone amps

 

[Jackson99]

I will qualify my opinion by saying that I haven't heard all of the cans on your list, but if it were me, I think I would go with the Grados - maybe even save a few bucks and go for the SR60 instead of the 80, especially if you aren't using an amp.

 

[cin__server]

save yourself some trouble and take texashorn91's advice and get an old reciever. popular belief is that they all sound better than the new stuff anyway. decent models can be had for ~$50. search auction sites for "vintage reciever" they will be old huge and wood veneered but they will sound great.

 

[jh4db536]

grado for gaming? movies? i dunno about that...

555 are good for general purpose use. comfortable too.
they are fine unamped (out of a soundcard). i hardly noticed a difference when i amped mine.

 

[brianiak]

Interesting... I think i might grab my living room's receiver hahah. I have an extra one somewhere... So what I would do is hook up the receiver to take input from my computer and then plug in my headphone jack into the receiver? Is that all I have to do? (haha im a total noob).

But yeah... wow it looks like my final battle is between Grado SR-80 versus Sennheiser HD555. I dont want to sound mean but just by the looks of the Grado SR-80 they seem very cheap and skinny. I've never seen them in real life by the way. That's really the one thing that is holding me back. But from what everyone is saying, Grados sound like a great brand. Im such a superficial and shallow person, I know.

(As far as the Alessandro MS-1, I cant even find an online merchant that sells it. The Alessandro's website's shopping cart is messed up for some reason.)

The only stores around my house are like Best Buy, Circuit City, Frys, Micro Center, etc... Where would I go to test professional quality headphones?

 

[texashorn91]

All I can vouch for are the HD555s, as I have never heard Grados. The Senns are all around great headphones, and they are very, very comfortable. Many people don't like Grados because they are known to be uncomfortable.

Quote:

Originally Posted by brianiak /img/forum/go_quote.gif So what I would do is hook up the receiver to take input from my computer and then plug in my headphone jack into the receiver? Is that all I have to do? (haha im a total noob).

Thats exactly all you have to do. The sound will be much better than what will be coming out of just a sound card. If I was unclear about how to connect your computer to a receiver, here is an example of a mini to rca cable. There are many like this, I am just using a generic Radio Shack one I found for about $8. I hope this helps.


Good Luck!

 

[Al Paccioli]

RP-21 has better bass than HD555 and better soundstage than the Grados.